There is growing pressure for brands to embrace the extended producer responsibly (EPR). A great many of the global brands are committing to make all of their packaging recyclable. However, there is a massive difference between recycling a product in a laboratory setting versus utilizing the existing recycling infrastructure.

Plastics waste management is a complex issue and the scope of the challenges is rather daunting. 150 million metric tons of plastics in the ocean today could grow to 250 million metric tons in less than a decade if immediate action isn’t taken.

This October, Andrew Almack ( CEO of Plastics For Change ) had the opportunity to speak at the Textile exchange conference in Washington DC. This Q&A session was hosted between Andrew Almack (A) and Liesl Truscott (Q).

Here are the top six factors inhibiting the circular economy in developing regions. We’ve compiled these factors from listening to the members of the informal recycling economy. After all, in developing countries 80-90 percent of the recycling activities are informal.

Plastics for Change worked closely with The Ocean Conservancy, The Closed Loop Fund, Encourage Capital, Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) & Waste2Worth Innovations to co-author the research report: THE NEXT WAVE Investment Strategies for Plastic Free Seas. The goal of this APEC sponsored initiative is to sustainably reduce the amount of plastic waste leaking into the ocean annually by 50% by 2025

In the last ten years humanity has created more plastic than in all the previous years of civilization combined. Our consumption of plastic continues to grow, especially in developing markets where waste management infrastructure cannot keep up with consumption. The next ten years will be the most important time to take action, as the decision society makes toward addressing waste managing will impact climate change but also, ocean plastic leakage and the livelihoods of millions of marginalized people at the base of the recycling supply chain.